Once Upon An Encounter
by Sora Takenouchi Ishida
Summary: Mimi was a famous worldwide model, who finds her life completely turned upside down when she accidentally crashes her car and has her phone stolen. Jyoumi turned to Koumi. Sorato in also on it.
1. The Beginning

Here I am with another fic! I had this idea when I was reading "I've got your number" by Sophie Kinsella and just thought it would be a perfect story for Mimi! This fic is loosely based on the book. It starts Jyoumi but will turn to Koumi at some point. Sorato is also featured on it, but I'm not sure about Takari yet. Please review! Enjoy.

**Once Upon A Encounter**

**Chapter 1: The Beginning  
**Mimi Tachikawa was walking down a street in New York with a large smile on her face. She was a twenty-five year old woman who had just gotten a huge offer to have a clothing line designed by her. Well, not exactly designed since she knew nothing about drawing fashion sketches. Her best friend, Sora Takenouchi, worked at a famous clothing store and suggested they'd have a special line by her. So basically Sora would draw the sketches and Mimi just had to approve them.  
Mimi was also a famous worldwide model, having even modeling for Victoria's Secrets. She decided to retire from this job at the end of last year; she wanted to explore different areas, so she's got into acting. She was also engaged to Jyou Kido, her long-time boyfriend; he was a respected doctor in Tokyo and just two years older than her. They have been together for about five years now and are still very happy. They didn't see each other very often, because they lived in different countries. But they made sure to visit one another once a month. Jyou was arriving at USA later that day; she couldn't wait to see him again.

Mimi continued her shopping for about half an hour and then headed to the clothing store Sora worked at. She walked in and saw her friend making out with her boyfriend, Yamato Ishida. Yamato was a tall and blonde guy with pierce baby-blue eyes. He was also the lead singer and bassist from a band called The Teenage Wolves. It all started as a garage band back in Japan and grew into something huge very fast. They are now famous all over the world. Mimi faked a cough to break them up.  
"Good afternoon to you too, Mimi." Sora teased her. "I drew some more sketches for you to approve. Do you want to see them now?"  
"Aren't you the most dedicated employee?" She said as she grabbed the sketches from her friend's hand. "Oh my God, Sora! These are seriously amazing!"  
Sora beamed. "Thank you."  
"Isn't she the most talented person ever?" Yamato slid his hands around her waist and she leaned against his body. "She has other talents she doesn't show everyone."  
"Ew, gross." Mimi frowned. "Save me from details on your sex life, would you?"  
"So are these approved too?" The red haired woman changed the subject back to the main point.  
"Yes, absolutely!" She clapped her hands together. "I will never be able to thank you enough for coming up with the idea of a clothing line by Mimi Tachikawa."  
"It's no problem, really." Sora smiled. "It helped me get a promotion, so it's a win-win situation."  
"So do you have any plans for tonight? Jyou is flying all the way from Japan and I wanted to see if you're up for a double date or something."  
Sora and Yamato exchanged looks and the blonde turned to her again. "We would love to, but it's Takeru's big night. His first novel is being released tonight and there'll be a big party."  
"Oh I see." Mimi tried not to sound disappointed.  
"But we can definitely arrange something tomorrow. It's been a while since we last saw Jyou, so we miss him."  
"When is he arriving, by the way?"  
"At around 7 pm." She looked at her watch. "Oh no, it's 6pm already! I need to rush home and take a shower before driving to the airport."  
"So you better hurry if you want to make it on time."  
"That's right. I'll see you guys later."  
And with that, she ran out the door and to her apartment.

Koushiro Izumi was a twenty-five year old man who was a trainee in engineering at New York Institute of Technology. Like Mimi, he was also from Japan, but decided to take his chances at going to college in the USA. Thankfully, NYIT saw his potential and offered him a scholarship.  
He had red hair and was about 5'7" and had a very slim figure. He had a cup of coffee from Starbucks on his right hand while he made his way out of the Institute. He was supposed to meet his longtime friend, Taichi Yagami, for a soccer game later. Honestly, he didn't feel like it that much, but Taichi convinced him to do it. Koushiro reached down into his pockets when he heard his phone ringing and buzzing inside his fancy pants. He sighed when he saw the name on the screen.  
"Hello, Natsuko."  
"Hey, Koushiro." She said in her usual exciting voice. "Do you feel like doing something tonight?"  
He frowned. He hated when people didn't understand him or pretended not to. Natsuko was his ex-girlfriend. They had broken up a few weeks ago. Well, _he broke up with her_. He couldn't stand her constant need to control every step he took and always be on his case whenever he did something without telling her. Apparently, she has a hard time accepting they're no longer together.  
"Natsuko, I don't mean to sound rude, but we're not a couple anymore. So if I have plans or not is not really your business."  
"You shouldn't really treat me that bad." She complained.  
"I'm sorry, but you're not making this any easier for me. I don't know how else I can say without being mean or something."  
"It's just temporary, right? We are just taking a break."  
"No, Natsuko." Koushiro sighed. "I'm tired of you always on my case. I need to breathe. I need to live my own life sometimes and you won't let me."  
"I'm sorry, Koushiro." She said desperately. "I know I'm a little possessive sometimes, but I promise I will change. Just give me another chance."  
"I can't, I'm sorry. Please, don't force me to make drastic decisions and change this number. I hope you accept this is over and there's no turning back."  
"But Koushiro…."  
"Goodbye, Natsuko." He ended the call without even giving her a chance to reply.

Sora was tidying up the last fabrics spread around the large white table while Yamato kept on kissing the back of her neck, making it hard for her to focus on her task.  
"You think we can use your new bed when we get to your place?"  
"I don't think so." She was surprised to herself for having the strength to answer. "We have Takeru's event, remember? We won't have time for it."  
"Oh, come on." He ran his hands up and down her arms. "We need to start using it someday."  
"Maybe later, but I won't promise you anything. Who knows what time will the event end?"  
"We can always sneak out before, you know?"  
"Must you be so insistent?" Sora turned around and faced him. She ran out of air for a moment; she forgot how handsome he was that day. "You're like a child who keeps tormenting their parents when they don't get what they want."  
"Come on, you know you want it to."  
"Maybe." She averted his eyes; she knew she would be busted if she didn't. "But this is important to Takeru. He'd kill you if you showed up late. _Or didn't show up at all_."  
"Oh I'm sure he would understand me wanting to spend some time along with my girlfriend."  
"It's not cool, Yama."  
"No." He nodded. "But you're leaving me no choice. Especially when you wear such a short skirt like that." He ran his hands over her thighs as he leaned over and touched her lips shyly, only to make her want for more.  
"Mrs. Takenouchi, do you need anything else from me?" Hikari Yagami, her assistant, asked from the office door.  
"No, you are free to go, Hikari." Sora pulled away from Yamato and flashed a smile at her employee. "Thanks."  
She watched Hikari leaving and then turned her attention back to her boyfriend. He had a mischievous smile on his face, the kind of smile he used to show he wasn't backing down that easily.  
"I hate that smile of yours." She avoided looking at him. "We're not doing _it_ before your brother's event."  
"You're so stubborn sometimes." He said with frustration and dropped his head a little. "What's the big deal anyway?"  
"It's Takeru's day! How can you be so reckless about your _own_ brother? The event isn't up before two hours, but God knows you take a long time to get ready. Sometimes I think you're the woman in this relationship."  
Sora couldn't help but giggle, much to Yamato's despair. He absentmindedly ran a hand through his golden hair.  
"Hey, this beauty doesn't pretty up alone. It takes a long of work to get it this way. Girls love it."  
"I bet they do."  
"Don't you love it?" He grabbed her by the waist and pulled her into him.  
"It's very soft, yeah." She had trouble with finding the words because he was planting a trail of kisses around her neck just to arouse her.  
She regretted telling him she had a weakness on the area; now he wouldn't let go. She could tell he was almost getting what he wanted in the first place. _Ah, to hell with it_. Sora threw her arms around his neck as Yamato's mouth made its way up to her chin and finally reached her mouth. He pressed his lips against hers lightly and then pulled away from her. She made a soft moan and he smirked. He traced the contour of her mouth with his finger and licked his own ones without realizing it. The stylist's eyes were closed since she gave up trying to resist him. She hated when he turned her on like that because she often lost her power to stop it, and he knew it.  
"Are we actually gonna have sex here? This is where I work."  
"Imagine how thrilling it can be." Yamato whispered in her ear. "Don't tell me you never wanted to have wild sex in your office?"  
"Not really, actually." Sora shook her head, completely grossed out. "It would take me long time to put everything back in its place."  
"You have a way to ruin someone's fantasy."  
"I'm sorry, Yamato. It's just not gonna happen."  
"Are you sure?" He asked seductively. "Cause it seemed to me you wanted to."  
He slid his hand under her top and made its way up her belly to her breasts. He held one of them firmly, causing Sora to tilt her head back and moan a bit loud. There was a smile full of satisfaction on his face.  
"Alright, you won. But we have to make it quick if we won't to make it to Takeru's event on time."  
Sora removed his hand from under her top and took it off, tossing it on the floor. Yamato unbuttoned his black shirt and let it fall down. He then grabbed his girlfriend by the waist and kissed her furiously. Before they knew it they were on the floor, without any clothes on.

Mimi was driving to the airport to pick Jyou up when she came across an unexpected traffic jam.  
"What? Are you kidding me?" She said angrily. "I need to get to the airport! I can't be held in a fucking traffic jam!"  
She started honking to see if the cars would go any faster, but didn't succeed. She frowned and lay back in her seat. She then sighed and turned up the radio. Luckily for her, the song playing at the moment was one of her favorites. She looked at herself through the rearview mirror and fixed her make-up. She was just finishing putting lipstick on when her phone rang. She smiled when she saw the name in the call ID.  
"Hello?" She said with sexiest voice she could.  
"Hey, where are you?" Jyou replied as he looked around the lounge. "I just got off the plane."  
"I'm held up in traffic." Mimi said frustrated. "Wait, you came a little earlier than I expected. What time is it?"  
"7pm. That's the time I said I was going to land."  
"I know this. But it takes about half an hour to get your bags and stuff."  
"Mimi, darling." He said softly though he was losing his temper. "I think you misunderstood me. The flight was due at 6:30pm. My luggage would be available at 7pm."  
"No, you said you were landing at 7pm."  
"Whatever." Jyou said annoyed, and clearly tried to change the subject. "Did you move yet?"  
"No." She nervously hit the steering wheel. "And I think it's gonna be a while."  
"Don't worry about me, Mimi." Jyou tried to calm her down. "I can get a cab to your place and we'll meet there. You are still near it, aren't you?"  
"Sort of, yes. God, I'm so sorry. I promised I would pick you up when you got here and couldn't even do it. I'm such a lousy girlfriend."  
"Don't be so hard on yourself. You couldn't know there'd be traffic jam. These things happen."  
"I know, but still…"  
"Hey, it's not your fault, okay? If you go back now, we can see each other sooner than you think."  
"Okay." She said, giving in. "I promise I will make up for it later."  
"I can't wait for it." He smiled.  
"I have to go now before I cause an accident."  
"That's clever. I need to hail a cab too. I'll see you soon, then."  
"Great. Jyou?"  
"Yes?"  
"I love you."  
"I love you too, Mimi."  
Jyou ended the call and stared at the phone in his hand. He couldn't help but think how lucky he was for having Mimi in his life.  
Mimi looked away for a moment to put her phone back in her purse. When she focused on the road again, she didn't have enough time to break and hit the car ahead.  
"Oh no! No!"

Koushiro was driving to the soccer field when he saw the accident that had just happened. He decided to stop and help the driver.  
"Are you alright?" He asked as he took a look at the damage the crash had caused.  
"Yes, I'm fine." Mimi said as she got out of the car. "This shouldn't have happened."  
"Talking on the phone while driving?"  
"That's none of your business." She snapped.  
"Okay." Koushiro said surprisingly calm. "I wanted to help, but apparently you don't need it."  
"Wait!" She said as he turned around to leave. "I'm sorry. I was supposed to pick up my boyfriend at the airport and was late. I really have a bad timing. I couldn't have crashed my car right now."  
"Well, there's nothing you can do about it. A friend of mine fixes cars. I can take you there if you want."  
"No, that's okay." She said with a smile. "I'm sure you have other things to do."  
"Yeah, well…" He rubbed the back of his head. "I was supposed to meet a friend for a soccer game, but I really don't feel like going. It's no trouble for me."  
"If you insist. My name is Mimi Tachikawa, by the way."  
"Mimi Tachikawa? As in the famous model?"  
"The one and only."  
Koushiro couldn't help but notice she had a beautiful smile. Her teeth were so white she could easily be on a toothpaste commercial on TV. He was looking at her so intently that he forgot about everything around him. That is, until he saw her hand waving in front of him.  
"I'm sorry, I was lost in my thoughts here."  
"I can see that." Mimi suppressed a laughter. "Are you taking me to your friend's?"  
"Yes." He nodded quickly. "'By the way, do you have a car insurance? I think you might need one."  
"Yes, I do indeed. Let me get it." She headed back to her car to grab her phone.  
Koushiro was still analyzing the damages on her silver Mercedes Benz with a frown on his face. Mimi was dialing the insurance company's number on her phone when someone in a bike passed by her and took it away.  
"Nooooooo! Come back here!" She yelled.  
"What happened?" He stood up and looked at her.  
"The man in the bike stole my phone."  
"What? Are you serious?"  
"Do you think I would joke about something like this? Of course I'm serious!"  
"Hey!" He started running towards the man. "Come back here! Give her phone back!"  
The man looked over his shoulder with a smile and gave him his middle finger.  
"Some education people have nowadays." Koushiro mumbled as he went back to Mimi.  
"Looks like your phone is gone."  
"What am I gonna do now? I have a lot of personal stuff in there." She leaned against her car and covered her face with her hands.


	2. Getting Friendly

Hello everyone! I want to thank everyone who read and reviewed. I thought this would have a lot of reviews since Mimi seems to be everyone's favorite, but it didn't happen. Well, maybe when Tri starts lol. I want to apologize beforehand if you feel like Sora/Yamato are a shallow couple, who only thinks about sex. They are not the main couple here, but they're much more than that. So anyway, here's the new chapter. Please review! Enjoy!

**Chapter 2: Getting Friendly  
**Koushiro was taking Mimi to his mechanic friend so she could talk to him about her damaged car. That was when he realized she was forgetting something.  
"Aren't you gonna call your boyfriend and explain the situation?" He asked, not taking his eyes away from the road. "He's probably waiting for you to pick him up."  
"Oh my God, that's right!" She said loudly, reaching for her phone in her pocket. "My phone is gone! My life is over!"  
"Don't be so melodramatic." The man sighed and handed her his mobile. "You can use mine."  
"Thanks a lot." She replied as she took it from his hands. "I ruined your plans for tonight, didn't I?"  
"No, that's okay." He said in a reassuring tone. "You did me a favor actually. I had agreed to meet some friends for a soccer game but didn't feel like going. You just gave me the perfect excuse for missing it."  
"Oh, well… I still feel about it, so if there's anything I can do to help…"  
"Really, you don't have to." Koushiro's eyes finally moved away from the road and met her honey colored ones. He was mesmerized for a second and quickly shook his head, returning his attention to the road ahead.  
He couldn't help but listen to Mimi's conversation with her boyfriend, whichever his name was. He didn't mean to eavesdrop, but the radio was off, so it was pretty easy to listen to him talking to her. The red-haired man put his phone away when Mimi ended the call and lay back on her seat.  
"He said he's taking the cab home."  
"What?" He raised his eyebrow at her.  
"I know you're wondering it."  
"What? I'm not wondering anything."  
"Of course you are." Mimi looked at him. "You may not have said it _out loud_, but it's written all over your face."  
"You're crazy, you know that?"  
"Thanks." She smiled rather proudly. "You have to be a little insane to survive."  
"So…" Koushiro tried to come up with a new subject. "Are you from USA?"  
"Japan. I moved to New York about three years ago. I quit modeling last year because I wanted to try different things."  
"Well, change is good." He parked the car and turned the engine off. "We're here."  
He got off the car and quickly ran to her side and opened the door for her.  
"What are you doing?"  
"Eh… I'm opening the door for you?"  
"I know that." Mimi held back a laugh. "But you didn't have to."  
"Oh, I'm sorry." He immediately stepped back, visibly embarrassed. "I should have realized not all women like it when men open the door for them."  
"Is that what you thought?" She had a look of surprise on her face. "That's not it at all. Well, not in my case anyway. I love it when men act gently and romantically. But since we're not on a date and have no commitment to each other, this isn't necessary."  
"I'm sorry. It's an automatic thing for me."  
"That's alright, you don't have to apologize. I actually think it's kinda cute."  
"You do?!"  
"What girl wouldn't love being with a man who opens the door of the car for her? Unless, of course, she likes women."  
Koushiro looked at her with a shocked face and opened his mouth to reply, but was stopped by his friend.

Sora was standing in front of her closet mirror as she put on her gold earrings. She was wearing a strapped black dress with a few sparks here and there. It ended right before her knees, making her beautiful toned legs the center of attention. They would _definitely_ get men's attention, as it was the first thing Yamato noticed, after the dress of course. He frowned as he slid his hand over her stomach and stood beside her.  
"Aren't you gonna put anything on those legs?"  
"What for?" She looked at him through the mirror. "I thought the dress is perfect by itself."  
"It is." He kissed her shoulder softly. "But I don't want other men to stare at them. _At you_."  
"You know I only have eyes for you." She put her hand over his and smiled. "Besides, this dress allows you to look at them. I'm sure you don't mind that, do you?"  
"No, I don't mind it all."  
"I can say the same thing about you, by the way. You look so handsome it will be hard for women to keep them eyes off you."  
Yamato split his girlfriend's long and cinnamon colored hair in two and kissed the back of her neck, causing her to shiver. "Does that make you feel jealous?"  
"I didn't say that."  
"I'm pretty sure you did."  
"I'm just saying you already draw attention to yourself on regular clothes, let alone when you dress up."  
"It sounds like jealousy to me." He continued to arouse her with his kisses.  
"Yamato, we can't do this now. We are ready to leave to Takeru's book release."  
"Oh come on, it won't take too long. I promise." He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into him.  
The smell of her hair and body inhaled by him almost got him drunk. They were a perfect mix of lavender, vanilla and flower scents. Definitely a peculiar taste, but he didn't mind it. In fact, _he loved it_. Such sweet fragrances were often inebriating to men, but Sora seemed to find the perfect balance to all of them. He moved her hair to the left side of her and buried his head over her shoulder, breathing in some more of her delicious scent.  
"This isn't fair." Sora complained. "We had sex not too long ago. Aren't you satisfied?"  
"I am." He whispered against her skin with his usual husky voice. "But you are wearing this sexy dress and it is screaming for me to take it off."  
"Except you can't." She tried to sound as steady as she could be. "If you're able to hold yourself, I might allow you do it later. Don't look at me like that."  
He twisted her around so they were face to face. His baby blue eyes were longingly and she felt her legs lose their balance. The stylist leaned over her boyfriend and wrapped her arms around his neck, resting her head on his chest.  
"Like what?" He asked, and she could tell he was smirking.  
Yamato grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him. He made circles on her cheeks with his thumbs and leaned in towards her. Just when they were inches away from each other and thus almost closing their eyes…  
"Damn it, it's my phone." Sora snapped out of her trance and shook her head, looking for her device.  
"Oh no, you're not." He pinned her against the wardrobe and started kissing her neck.  
"Please, Yamato. It might be important, I need to get that."  
"Whatever it is, they will call later. You're busy here."  
"Stop it." She said firmly and pushed him away, fixing her dress and hair. "This is not the time. I want to have sex with you. But if you keep pushing your luck, I'll be on sex strike."  
"You wouldn't do that."  
"You know I would. So try me." She grabbed her mobile and pressed the green button, but the person had already hung up.  
"Who was it?"  
"It's my mother. I'll call her on the way." Sora grabbed her purse and Yamato followed her as they left for Takeru's book release.

Koushiro and Mimi were talking to Miyazaki, his mechanic friend, about the situation with Mimi's car. He wanted to take a look at it himself; the red haired man drove them to where it was.  
"Hmm, it looks pretty damaged." Miyazaki said as he rubbed his chin. "What happened?"  
"I was putting my phone away after I talked to my boyfriend. I looked away for like five seconds, but it was enough to hit the car ahead."  
"I see."  
"Is that what happened?" Koushiro asked her. "You didn't tell me this."  
"Well, I didn't have the time, did I?" Mimi replied a little nervous. "My phone got stolen a few moments after that."  
"I gotta say, it's a good thing you have car insurance. You have an expensive car and the cost to get it fixed is high."  
"Really? I never got to have it fixed, only regular maintenances. How much do you think it is?"  
"I would say around 1.500,00 dollars."  
"WHAT?!" The woman yelled with disbelief. "You can't be serious."  
"Unfortunately I am. You have a Mercedes car. Its components are high quality ones, thus very expensive to afford."  
"Alright. And how long do you think you're gonna take to repair it?"  
"It shouldn't be long, about three days I think."  
"Three days?!"  
"I may have to replace some components. But it all depends on how fast the places I buy them from can deliver them."  
"But you won't miss it so much, right?" Koushiro talked once again. "I mean, your boyfriend is in town. If anything, you can use the subway or hail a taxi."  
"I never needed to do such things. I always used my own car."  
"Are you kidding me?" The soon-to-be engineer was taken by surprise. "You _actually_ never took the subway or a cab for an emergency?"  
"No, that's why I have a car." She replied just as surprised. "Why are you so shocked about it?"  
"I guess you're just from another level in your society. Sometimes I do these things, as my car breaks a great deal of times."  
"Damn right, it does." Miyazaki nodded.  
"So I assume you need a ride home." Koushiro chose to ignore his friend.  
"That would be nice, thank you." Mimi smiled.

Sora and Yamato made it inside the bookstore and were surprised to see it was crowded. Well, they _sort of_ expected it, considering they had a hard time finding a place to park the car.  
"Wow, a lot of people came to get a copy of Takeru's book." Sora said amazedly as she looked around.  
"The publishing house is betting it all on it." Yamato stated rather proudly of little his brother.  
"Well, it was to be expected, right? I've read some of his short stories, Takeru is really talented. Was your mother that inspiring? I mean, she's a journalist, so she must have the ability to write stuff."  
"I guess so." He shrugged. "I never actually got to read her creations, though. She said it wasn't suited for kids. You can tell what she often wrote about." He added with a smirk.  
"Of course she wouldn't let you read them." Sora felt her cheeks burning when she imagined the content on her boyfriend mother's hobby. "You were just a kid, that would be awful. Hell, I wouldn't want my kids to sneak through my personal stuff and me having to explain it to them."  
"Are we talking about children now?"  
"What?"  
"Did you finally give up and ever consider it?"  
"What are you talking about, Yamato?"  
"You didn't even want to come near the kids subject and now you're bringing it up."  
"Are you insane?" She asked with an eyebrow raised. "How does that mean I'm considering it now?"  
When Yamato opened his mouth to reply, he was interrupted by a happily Takeru. He was making his way through by elbowing a group of people who was standing on his way.  
"Hello brother. Sora." A smile rose on his face as he hugged the two of them.  
"Hi, Takeru. How are you feeling?"  
"Nervous. I can hardly believe this is actually happening. Did you see how full this place is? All these people are here for me."  
"Well, you deserve everything that's been happening. I've read some bits of the book and I gotta say it's pretty good. I'm sure they won't be disappointed at all."  
"Let's hope not."  
"Takeru, there you are!" Naomi, his personal assistant, stopped by his side and bowed down to Yamato and Sora. They returned the gesture. "The book signing is about to start, but they want you to give a small speech first."  
"Duty calls." He turned to the couple with a smile and then disappeared in the crowd with Naomi.  
"What about your parents?" Sora asked as she turned to face her boyfriend and placed her hands on his hips. "Did you see them around?"  
"Not that I noticed." Yamato replied as he searched for his parents. "But there are so many people here it makes it harder to find someone."  
"They will probably find us." She pulled away and grabbed his hand. "Come on, I want to be near when Takeru gives his speech."

Mimi had her head leaned against the car window as her mind wandered off. So much happened in the course of twelve-hours. She woke up feeling excited to see Jyou again after almost a month apart. And then she hit her car accidentally and got her phone stolen. She's a firm believer of the motto 'nothing happens without a reason'. She also got to meet Koushiro, and she couldn't thank him enough. Who knows what could have happened if he wasn't there at that time? She blinked hard and shook her head as she noticed the car parking.  
"There you go." Koushiro turned the engine off and looked at her.  
"Thank you so much for helping me, Koushiro." She tried to push her thoughts away and sound cheerful. "You had no reason to, but you did."  
"It was no problem, really. You needed my help, and it wouldn't hurt me to do so."  
"Your mother must be really proud of you."  
"I guess so."  
They stared at each other for some moments. Neither one of them said anything and the tension began to increase. Koushiro leaned over and was getting closer to Mimi until a voice startled her and she pulled away.  
"It's Jyou."  
"Who?"  
"My boyfriend." She looked for the doorknob, too embarrassed to even look at the driver. "I should go."  
"Yeah, I think so too." He leaned back on his seat and touched his forehead.  
"So I see you around, I guess."  
"Have a good night, Mimi." He managed to turn around with a smile on his face.  
"You too, Koushiro." She smiled back and then stepped inside her house.  
"Who was that?" Jyou asked as he went to greet Mimi.  
"No one." She lied. "Did you have a good flight?"  
"Yes, thank you." He kissed her briefly. "I was dying to see you."  
"Me too." Mimi grabbed his hand and began to lead him inside the house. "I'm sorry I couldn't pick you up at the airport."  
"Don't worry about it. What happened anyway?"  
"I got distracted when we finished talking on the phone and accidentally got my car crashed."  
"Oh God!" He exclaimed. "Are you okay? We should take you to the hospital."  
"I'm fine, Jyou." Her eyes moved to his chest, where her hands were playing with his sweater, and she smiled. "I just want to lie down and relax. A lot happened tonight."  
"Okay, but if you don't get better, I'm taking you to the hospital first thing in the morning."  
They reached the porch area of her house and Jyou wrapped his arms around his girlfriend for the first since he had arrived. Mimi immediately returned his gesture and rested her head on his shoulder.  
"I missed you so much."  
"I missed you too, Mimi." He caressed her long brown hair softly. "I hope you don't mind, but I told your maid to go home and prepared a special dinner for us."  
"You what?" She pulled away from him with a surprised look on her face.  
"I can tell you didn't like it."  
"I did, I did." She said quickly. "I'm sorry, my mind is elsewhere. But I could definitely have some food now."  
"Great, I'll have the table ready." He began to go inside but stopped halfway. "Aren't you going in?"  
"I'll be right there." She flashed him a smile and then looked towards the gate, hoping Koushiro was still there.


	3. Thinking of You

Hey you all! I want to thank for everyone who reviewed last chapter. I hope you like this one just as much. Don't forget to review this chapter as well! See you next month.

**Chapter 3: Thinking of You  
**Mimi and Jyou spent the whole day together. They went jogging in the morning and to the movies in the afternoon. They were now getting ready to meet Sora and Yamato for a double date at one of New York's finest restaurants.  
"Well, I'm ready." Jyou announced. "So whenever you're done, I'll be waiting for you in the living room.  
"Okay." Mimi replied rather distracted.  
"Are you feeling good? I have this sensation you're quieter than usual."  
"I'm fine." She lied. "I was just thinking about my collection release."  
"Oh. Don't worry, I'm sure it will sell tons."  
"I know." She paused for a second, feeling awful for having another man in her mind. "I will be there in a second."  
"Alright." The doctor left the bedroom and headed to the large living room.  
Mimi looked at herself in the mirror inside her closet and frowned. She thought she looked terrible. She looked tired, even though there weren't any dark circles around her eyes. She mentally told herself to get the red haired man off her mind.  
"I'm the girlfriend of an amazing man, so why do you keep thinking of Koushiro?" She said to herself. "You don't even know him! He could be a thief for all you know."  
But even that wasn't too convincing. In fact, it only made her think about him even more. She sighed and left her closet.  
Mimi headed to her dressing table. It was wooden made with a large round mirror on it. There were two drawers in the left side, in which she kept her lipsticks, eyeliners and mascara. There were other make-up accessories there too, such as blush and eye shadows. Most of her beauty items were gifts from her sponsors; she never really had to spend money on these things since she became famous. She picked one of her best eyeliners and carefully applied in below her eyes. Then she grabbed a pinkish lipstick and put it on her mouth. Mimi blinked and smiled genuinely for the first that day. Her makeup wasn't too eccentric, but it was perfect for the occasion. She put her items back in the drawer and fixed her hair before leaving her bedroom.

Jyou was nearly drooling when she went downstairs. She was wearing a sleeveless red dress that came just before her knees and a white shawl, which matched her white sandals. Mimi had grabbed two locks of her hair, one of each side, and tied them together behind her head, leaving the rest loose. She could tell from Jyou's expression that she was stunning.  
"Wow, Mimi." He said as he stood up and walked to her.  
"You should stop drooling." She teased with a smile as she wiped the moisture from the corner of his mouth.  
"Well, you are beautiful." He replied as he kissed her cheek.  
"Sora and Yamato are probably waiting for us. We should get going."  
"Oh right."  
"Just so you know, you don't look so bad yourself." A smile rose on her lips. "I missed you, Jyou. It sucks you are living in the other side of the world."  
"I know. But we're managing to do it, right? I mean, we're still as strong as we were when we both lived in Japan. Right?"  
"Right." She tried to sound as sincere as she could, but she wasn't as sure anymore.

Koushiro was sitting on the floor in his living room, with his back leaned against the couch. He was playing videogames with his longtime friend Taichi Yagami, and was about to lose another round of his Street Fighter game.  
"Seriously, Taichi." He complained as he threw the control away. "Do you do anything else other than practice these stupid games?"  
"Hey, don't be a bitch about it. I'm naturally talented. You, on the other hand, need to start practicing it as fast as you can."  
"Should I remind you that I actually have a job?" He snapped. "I barely have time to such things."  
"You have time now." Taichi snapped back. "We're in the mid-twenties who have nothing to do on a Saturday night. How losers are we?"  
"You can go to a dance club if you want to. I know you are looking for a girlfriend. You won't find any if you continue locked up inside my apartment."  
"True." The brunette stretched his arms and stood up. "There are some hot chicks out there just waiting for me."  
"Aren't your ego a little too big?" Koushiro asked with a raised eyebrow.  
"Well, I'm a famous soccer player."  
"Now that's a little way over the line, even for you. You are very well—known, yes, but I doubt people know your name in other states unless they are soccer fans."  
"Ouch, that hurt." Taichi dramatically placed his hand over his heart and pretended to be upset. "What happened to Natsuko anyway? I remember you two couldn't keep your hands off each other."  
"Ugh, don't remind me. It started off greatly, but then she began to control every step I took and couldn't accept me wanting to do things on my own."  
"I hate it when girlfriends don't give you enough space."  
"Tell me about it." Koushiro sighed. "Eventually I got fed up with her behavior."  
"I don't blame you. I think you resisted more than I would. By the way, you never told me what happened yesterday."  
"What about it?"  
"Well, you were really late for our soccer game."  
"I was on my way when I witnessed a car accident. You would never guess who was involved in it."  
"Who?" Taichi asked eager to know the answer.  
"Mimi Tachikawa."  
"As in the famous model?"  
"The one and only."  
"You lucky bastard." He nudged Koushiro on his arm. "You asked for her phone number, right?"  
"Taichi, she's in a relationship."  
"So what? She's not married yet. Anything can happen."  
"You have a point. But I think she wouldn't be interested in someone like me. Guys like you are more like her type, I guess."  
"Oh, don't put yourself down like that." The soccer player said reassuringly. "Do you know how many guys would do anything to be around her, even if it was just for a moment?"  
"A lot, I believe." He shrugged. "I would hate to ruin it for them, but she seemed pretty in love with her boyfriend, even though he lives in Japan."  
"What? How do you know all that?"  
"I actually got to talk to her. I stopped to help her with her car. And then someone stole her phone."  
"God, Koushiro, how can you miss such an opportunity? You should have asked for her phone number."  
"Did you ignore the part where I told you she has a boyfriend? And why would she even be interested in me? I have nothing to offer her."  
"Oh boy." Taichi shook his head with disbelief and put his arm around Koushiro's shoulder. "You don't know anything about love."  
"Eh… I beg your pardon, but when was the last time you had a girlfriend? A _real_ girlfriend?" Koushiro added before his roommate could reply.  
He opened his mouth several times to reply, but couldn't come up with anything. So he complained about how Koushiro always found a way to bring him down.  
"I'm sorry, but you aren't exactly the best person to give me love advice."  
"Well, do you want to be with her or not?"  
"Taichi, I've said this over and over. She has a boyfriend." He was starting to lose his patience. "I really don't want to break them up just to become her new boyfriend. Besides, I only talked to her once. Unlike you, I can't know if she will be the love of my life by just one encounter. We didn't even go on a date, we just happened to be at the same place in the same time."  
"That's fate working in your favor." Taichi insisted. "You should never give up on it."  
"Ugh, I give up." Koushiro threw his hands in the air. "I'm hungry. Do you want something to eat? We can order a pizza."  
"I was thinking maybe we could go to a restaurant this time. It's saturday night and I'm bored to death. I need to go out and have some fun."  
"Alright, so what do you suggest?"  
"How about Dina's? The food there is amazing."  
"Alright. Italian food it is."  
"Then we can go to a club."  
"Now you're really pushing your luck."  
"Oh come on." Taichi insisted. "It's been a while since we went out, just the two of us. You really need to get yourself a woman."  
"Taichi, I hardly think I need a girlfriend right now."  
"Right. Because you want to get Mimi Tachikawa. It's cool, I can totally understand it."  
"That's not it. And please stop talking about her. I already said there's no way something can happen between us."  
"Are you still into Natsuko?"  
"What the hell? Why would I ever dump her if I wanted to be with her? That makes no sense at all."  
"Who knows?" He shrugged. "I can never know what's on your mind anyway."  
"I'm glad for that." Koushiro said. "So, you do want to go out or not? It's getting late."  
"Yeah, sure. I just need to take a shower. It'll be really quick, I promise."  
"Alright, I'll just keep practicing Street Fighter while you go clean up."  
"Ugh, that's so not fair! Now I want to play."  
"Go take shower, Taichi." He demanded. "Soccer makes you stink badly."  
"Fine, _mom_." The soccer player snapped. "And don't ever say 'clean up' again. Girls say that."  
"Whatever."

Mimi and Jyou left the car after they arrived at Dina's. Sora and Yamato were already expecting for them. The woman was wearing a dark blue dress just as long as Mimi's. it was also sleeveless and had a very generous neckline. That sole reason was enough for Yamato to be unable to keep his eyes away from Sora's breasts, much to her discomfort.  
"Finally!" She said she approached them to get away of Yamato's intense stare. "I thought you weren't going to show up anymore. I'm starving!"  
"I'm so sorry! We were busy."  
"Okay, I got it." Sora replied with a wink. "Save me the details."  
"That's not it!" Mimi felt her face burn with embarrassment. "We were just…"  
"It's okay, you don't have to explain to me, Mimi. Should we get in now? They won't hold our reservation for much longer."  
"Right." She nodded and followed Jyou and her friends inside.  
Mimi couldn't help but notice Jyou was acting a little off since he saw in the clothes she was wearing. She wondered what was going on his mind, but quickly shook it off and almost bumped into Sora.  
"I'm sorry." She apologized. "I was distracted."  
"That's alright. Are you worried about something?"  
"No, not really." She wasn't sure whether to share it with her stylist friend or not. "I'm just thinking about the clothing line, that's all."  
"You're worrying about this _now_?" Sora asked with an eyebrow raised. "I'm sure everything will turn out great. Your line will be a huge success!"  
"I hope so too."  
"But that's not what's really bothering you, is it?"  
"What?"  
"Come on, Mimi. I know you better than that. I can tell when something is really bothering you and it sure isn't your clothing line."  
"Sometimes I hate you." Mimi said with a smile.  
"I love you too." The red haired woman stuck her tongue at her. "But if you need to talk, you know I'm here."  
"Thanks Sora, but I'm fine. Really."  
"If you say so."  
"Hey, you two." Yamato called loudly. "We don't have all the time of the world to wait for you."  
"Always so nice." Sora shook her head at her boyfriend's lack of sensitiveness. "You don't have to yell, we're coming."  
"I'm starving, Sor. You know I haven't eaten anything since lunch."  
"Because you'd rather be hungry enough to embarrass yourself in front of all these people. I told you should have gotten something to eat. The stubborn child in you didn't listen to me."  
"Make fun all you want. You can't deny the food here is incredible."  
"I didn't say that."  
"No, but you…"  
"Can we not fight, please?" Mimi interrupted the small argument between the couple. "People are starting to stare."  
"I'm sorry." Both of them said at the same time, visibly embarrassed.  
"So, Jyou… how are things in Japan?"  
"Good, I think." He shrugged. "Nothing much has changed."  
"I miss it. I miss my parents."  
"I'm sure they miss you too, Sora. You can't get a few days off from work to visit them?"  
"Things have been so crazy with Mimi's fashion line and all. I have no idea when I will be able to take a break from it all."  
"Excuse me, I need to go the restroom." Mimi pushed her chair away and left in a hurry.  
"I'll uh… I'll be right back." Sora followed her friend.

Sora walked in the bathroom and saw her friend leaning against the sink, looking at the mirror with a sad face.  
"Alright. Tell me." She crossed her arms and waited for Mimi to start talking.  
"Tell you what?"  
"You are not yourself since you and Jyou got here. You were quiet, which is something unusual. You can't fool me, Mimi. There's something really bothering you."  
"I'm fine, Sora. I already said that." Mimi said rather frustrated.  
"Except your expression and the tone of your voice say otherwise. You can tell me."  
"Tell you what?" The model yelled and let it all out. She turned around to face her friend. "That I have a boyfriend and keep thinking about another man I met yesterday? Is that what you want me to tell you?"  
"Whoa… what?" Sora was taken aback with her outburst. "What are you talking about?"  
"When I went to pick up Jyou at the airport, I got involved in a car accident. Koushiro happened to be driving by when he saw me and stopped to help. In the meantime, a cyclist stole my phone. I couldn't even call my car insurance. So he took me to his friend, who happened to fix cars so he could give it a look. And then he took me home."  
"Mimi, do you know how danger it is? Why didn't you call me? I would have come to pick you up."  
"You and Yamato were at Takeru's book release. I didn't want to disturb you. I don't know, Koushiro didn't seem like a bad guy."  
"I see. So you can't stop thinking about him ever since."  
"Ugh, I know." Mimi turned her back to Sora and leaned over the sink. "It's so stupid, isn't it? Why would I ever think about him when I have Jyou?"  
"That's not where I was going. But I think you can't know for sure whether you have feelings for someone when you only saw them once."  
"I know, Sora. But I can't help it."  
"It's probably just infatuation. Maybe you'll never see him again and this indecision will end." She smiled. "Can we go now? I'm a little hungry."  
"Sure." Mimi smiled back and put her arm around her friend's shoulder. "Thanks for listening to me and I'm sorry for taking my frustration out on you."  
"No problem at all. That's what friends are for."  
The two women were heading to their tables at the same time Koushiro and Taichi walked in. Koushiro and Mimi exchanged brief looks, but it was long enough for Sora to notice he was the man she was just talking about. The soon-to-be engineer smiled and the model felt her cheeks burn with embarrassment. Sora looked at Jyou and prayer he hadn't figured out what was happening. Luckily for her, he was talking happily with Yamato. The man who was with Koushiro also didn't seem to have a clue of what was going on. _Or maybe he just didn't notice them looking at each other_.  
"So that's the man you were telling me about."  
Mimi simply nodded, unable to say something in return.


End file.
